Christine Marsiglio MW named the 2019 Madame Bollinger Medal winner

6 November 2019

Christine Marsiglio MW was announced as the 2019 winner of the Madame Bollinger Medal, which is awarded for excellence in tasting and outstanding achievement in the Institute of Masters of Wine practical examinations. The winner’s certificate was presented by Andrew Hawes, Managing Director of Mentzendorff and Secretary of the Madame Bollinger Foundation, on behalf of Etienne Bizot, the Chairman of the Madame Bollinger Foundation and also President of the Bollinger Family Group (SJB), at the annual IMW awards ceremony held at Vintners’ Hall in London.

This year marks the 31st occasion that the Madame Bollinger Medal has been presented since its inauguration in 1988. The winners of the medal comprise 10 different nationalities of Master of Wine, 16 men and 15 women.

Commenting on the importance of such recognition of achievement in wine education, Etienne Bizot, great-nephew of Madame Bollinger, said; “When my father Christian Bizot launched the “Madame Bollinger Foundation” at Vintners Hall in 1988, the purpose was to foster quality, education and ethics in all matters relating to wine at an international level. In the pursuit of excellence in wine education, the Institute of Masters of Wine is without question the global reference, the leading light, in its field. I am therefore very pleased to award the Madame Bollinger Medal to Christine, a superlative taster, in honour of Madame Bollinger.”

Upon being presented with the certificate, Christine Marsiglio MW said; “I’m very excited to have won the Madame Bollinger Medal and so pleased to have been a part of this amazing group of people. I’m delighted to be associated with Champagne Bollinger in such a way.”

Christine has enjoyed an interesting and varied career in the wine industry to date. She is a Canadian residing in London, where she is a wine educator and programme manager at WSET School London, and mum to a three-year-old and a one-year-old. She recently contributed to the development of materials for the newly released WSET Diploma and teaches all WSET levels. Before discovering her love of wine education, Christine was tastings executive at Decanter where she ran panel tastings and helped organise the Decanter World Wine Awards. During the course of her MW and WSET Diploma studies, Christine was awarded scholarships from the Family of Twelve, Freixenet, and the Derouet Jameson Memorial Foundation. She holds an MSc in oenology and viticulture from École Supérieure d’Agriculture d’Angers, France, where her thesis focussed on the early detection of Brettanomyces in wineries. She also holds a BSc in chemistry and biology from the University of Alberta in Canada. Christine is a keen long-distance runner, cook, and traveller.

Christine will be presented the medal itself by Etienne Bizot at a private visit for herself and family to the House of Champagne Bollinger in Aÿ, which will take place next year.

ENDS

For more information contact: Sarah Kirkpatrick Head of Marketing, Communications and Membership Institute of Masters of Wine +44 (0)207 383 9131skirkpatrick@mastersofwine.org

Notes to Editors:

About the Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW)The Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW) is a membership organisation with an exceptional international reputation. For almost 70 years, its members – the Masters of Wine (MWs) – have been at the forefront of leadership and expertise in the world of wine. The IMW’s mission is to promote excellence, interaction and learning across all sectors of the global wine community. MWs prove their comprehensive understanding of wine by passing the MW examination, recognised worldwide for its rigour and exacting standards. In addition to passing the examination, members must sign the code of conduct before they are entitled to use the initials MW. This requires them to act with honesty and integrity, and use every opportunity to share their knowledge of wine with others. Today, there are 389 Masters of Wine working in 30 countries. The membership encompasses winemakers, sommeliers, buyers, journalists, shippers, consultants, academics, educators and more. There are 350 students in the 2018-2019 MW study programme from over 40 countries.

About the Madame Bollinger FoundationThe Madame Bollinger Foundation was founded in honour of Madame Lily Bollinger who tirelessly headed the eponymous Champagne house from 1941, following the death of her husband, to retirement in 1973. Founded in 1987, and established as the first partner of The Institute of Masters of Wine in 1988, the purpose of The Madame Bollinger Foundation is to promote excellence in oenology and to foster quality, education, professional qualification and ethics in all matters relating to wine at an international level. The Foundation and the board of trustees have determined that the Institute of Masters of Wine is the best organisation to help reach this aim, and are proud of their long and continuous association with the Institute for over 25 years.